The day of Thanksgiving is a day that is supposed to be filled with family and food and cozy naps when you're exploding from too much food...
I, will be on a ginormous boat on the high seas. My Thanksgiving may be filled with me on the bathroom floor- sea sick. I am going on a week long cruise with my In Laws. It was left in my husband's Grandmother's will- that we should all go, all expenses paid - on Thanksgiving- on this cruise. I know- don't look a gift cruise ship in the mouth. It just feels so wrong to be cruising in the Caribbean so far away from home on the day that defines home.
Yet, when I think of Nana Gerri and her dying wish, it warms my heart. So, I am going- to reflect on being Thankful for that lovely woman who welcomed me, a shiksa, into her ample Bubelah bosom. She was the member of the family that made me feel loved. For her yiddish, her appliqued effervescence, and her matzoh ball soup,I am truly Thankful.
I do like that we reflect on gratitude for the things that matter this week. There are many things to be thankful for!
This Week I am very Thankful for a new undertaking...
PICTURE THIS
Casey Girard and Dani Jones were brainstorming this last week and asked me and Diandra Mae to join in the fun. We, along with all the kidlitosphere... will provide content in one, concise stream pertaining to the world of Childrens' Publishing. We are taking submissions of links, check out the form and read the info. It's a fun, easy way - to gather the "Goings On" and "Gather Together"-you know like that Thanksgiving song...
While I am riding the Gratitude Train...
Always thankful for my friends over at The Sketchables! - these ladies keep me on my drawing toes. Not that I draw with my toes... but maybe I should try to....
I am also quite, quite thankful for my writing crit group. Just joining them in this journey has boosted my confidence as a writer. We have had some "hangouts" at night- that tho' we are spread across the country, feel like we are sitting around my coffee table. Thanks Bonnie Adamson, Nina Crittendon, Diandra Mae, Courtney Pippin-Mathur and Angela Matteson.
I am Thankful for the friendships that I have with fellow illustrators - it has filled a void that I don't think I could ever measure. Especially the one I sat down next to by fate's design, I am sure...Kathy Blackmore. We have had some adventures in art together!
Who isn't thankful for NPR? NPR - I love you.
I was listening today driving home from the gym, to a chef talk about the spiritual fulfillment of everyday tasks...like chopping onions, "There is a Zen saying, "Before Enlightenment chop wood carry water, after Enlightenment, chop wood carry water.""
It's always little moments like these - nuggets of knowledge, insights into alternative points of view - that I get from NPR.
I am thankful for the inspired idea that has inspired others to have inspired ideas- Thanks, Tara Lazar for PiBoIdMo. You are doing a lot of work to help others creatively and you are a gem.
At the risk of spraining my arm- I'm gonna pat myself on the back and say thanks- to me- for speaking up at the gym this morning when a woman called another woman a "cow" - because she had put on weight. I am finally able to feel that "OH HELL NO" feeling- and speak it. I have told my daughter from the time she was in a stroller - people are like art- we come in all colors and shapes. We paint the canvas that is life - and that's what makes life beautiful. How do we frame that art? In the way we treat each other. How do we view that art?- thru kind eyes. I can't complain about the direction the world is going if I am a back seat driver. I'll take the wheel. - look out!
I also - recently chose to not sign with an agent because I listened, hard - to myself. I trusted my own judgement and I am wholly secure that it was the right decision for me. Two years ago, I wore my illustrator's heart on my sleeve. Today- I am willing to wait and make the right move. Thankful for age, experience and clarity. If only it came at 24.
And most, most of all- I am Thankful for my husband and my daughter. They are the beginning, the middle and the end of everyday of my life.
Now- The Turkey Cruise doesn't seem so bad!- One week to reflect on being grateful while sippin' the fruity drinks! Pass the frozen cranberry margarita!!
Happy Thanksgiving everybody!!
